"This [season] is really a justified farewell to perhaps the best player in franchise history. And, God-willing, he's going to want to play every game and he's going to want to play a lot of minutes in every game, because that's just the way he is.

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"And as long as that continues, which it should, then that's 30-35 minutes that you might give to a young player that you can't. How do you get a feel for your team going forward when you know that your best player is not going to be there next year? So it's really hard to go forward until he's no longer here."

Kupchak insists however that this is not a bad idea, even with promising rookie players D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, Lance Nance Jr and Jordon Clarkson laying in wait.

"That's not a bad thing. I'm not saying it's a bad thing at all. It's something that I think is a good thing. In some regards, there's a silver lining.

"Our younger players can make mistakes, and it can kind of go under the radar because Kobe garnishes so much attention. Every game, it's about Kobe. Even when he doesn't play, it's about Kobe.

"So in a lot of regards, there's a silver lining that our guys can develop under the radar and maybe make a mistake or make two mistakes and it not be a big deal."

The 37-year-old shooting guard, has been self-critical of performances this season, averaging 17.2 points over 30.4 minutes played.

Lakers coach Bryon Scott, however, is adamant in his support of his former teammate, telling ESPN that he would never bench the star no matter how much he struggles.